On the communications screen, Amida Belenkest leaned back slightly, seemingly shifting into a more comfortable position. This revealed the scene behind her: the private study of Princess Rainbow Rose aboard the Qingqiu, her "cruise ship."
Behind her chair was a huge wall of neatly arranged poplar bookshelves, their colors fresh and bright.
Of course, practical-minded Yani didn't think there was anything creative or productive about putting a wooden bookshelf on a warship. The shelves were actually made of high-carbon steel treated to resist fire and acid, then coated with wood-grain paint.
And what sat on the shelves wasn't a collection of ancient paper books, but a long row of built-in data storage and computing units.
Practical-minded Yani had never thought paper books could showcase her knowledge or taste, either.
In this age, rows of paper books weren't meant to be read. They were an increasingly vulgar form of decoration, almost fit to sit at the same table as dzi beads and white-wax bracelets.
It was a lovely, minimalist room. Though it didn't quite suit a young woman, it was certainly a private fortress belonging to this Alliance princess.
Of course, as one of her "besties," Brunhild had even been invited to share tea and lively conversation in this study a few times. They had frankly exchanged views on how the two superpowers could more gracefully—and sustainably—exploit the other toiling masses and the small nations of the Third World.
Queen Brunhild of Sulluk was indeed one of the few imperials ever to enter this private room.
But that had been five years ago.
Back then, the war hadn't broken out. The Alliance and the Empire had been all smiles, eagerly joining forces to develop the New World. Back then, Yani had been the Alliance's extraordinary trade representative to the Empire, spending